Resilient seating surface for chairs



July 7, 1953 B. R. WEILL I RESILIENT SEATING SURFACE. FOR CHAIRS 3Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 11, 1951 INVENTOR. bwa/m 1?. tMc/Lz B. R.WElLL RESILIENT SEATING SURFACE FOR CHAIRS July 7, 1953 Filed June 111951 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

5( 14 0 1Q WET/LL July 7, 1953 B. R. WEILL RESILIENT SEATING SURFACE FORCHAIRS 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed June 11, 1951 INVENTOR. lFu/va 1 W674,

Patented July 7, 1953 um'rEosr r s PATENT OFFICE Application June 11,1951, Serial No. 230,909

' In France July 10, 1950 5 Claims; (Cl. 1551'79) The invention relatesto chairs, and it concerns particularly those chairs with a back, andalso-armchairs. -It-is one object of the present invention to arrangethe seats in such a manner that they satisfy better than heretofore thevarious requiree ments encountered in practice.

-Itis another object of the present invention 'to'arrange the seats ofthe type in question in such a manner that their superstructure isremovable, being in particular held in place by elastic means, so thatit is possible to change or to clean readily such seat-superstructure,just like it; isdone at thepresent time for seat covers.

"It is still another object of the present inventiontoarrange theframe'of the aforementioned type of seats by assemblnig parts which arereadily disassembled, in particular by means of bolts,

the said seats comprising forexample two lateral uprights forming legsand elbow-rests, as well as two cross-members connectingthe saiduprights together and with parts forming the sides of the seat properand'of the back.

It is yet another object of the present invention to make thesuper-structure of the said type seatsby means of a casing made offabric or of another flexible material, filled with a compact materialhavingacertain degree of resiliency "or elasticity, in particular,sponge rubber.

Ibis-a further object of the present invention to--providea coveringonthe sides of the said seats, this covering being preferably held inplace by an elastic connection running along the said sides.-

It is still a further object of the-present'in vention to provide meansforming the suspensionof-the said seats which consist of metal or othertype blades or plates,attached to cables which are preferably elastic.

With these and other objects in view which will become apparent in thefollowing detailed description, the present invention will be clearlyunderstood in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a perspective front view of the chair, parts being-brokenaway for the purpose of better demonstration;

Fig.2isasectional side elevation; r

Fig.- 3'is afront elevation, partly in section; Fig.4 is a perspectiveview of the removable superstructure of the chair;

-Fig. 51s a side elevation of a second embodiment of the chair; and

Fig/6 is a diagrammatic perspective view'of another-embodiment of theseat" suspension.

In the known embodiments of chairs in which the fabric or cover of thearmchair is integral with the substructure of the latter, the repairoperations, when the fabric becomes worn or fades, are usually lengthyor delicate, forcing the user to deprive himself temporarily of the seatandto entrust it in the hands of an expert It is known, however, thatrecourse is often had to protective covers in addition to the fabric orcover of the chair, which have a more or less unsightly appearance andwhich can cover the seats only temporarily. f

In order to overcome these difliculties, the seat or armchair iscovered, in an essentially removable manner, by a superstructure whichcomprises permanently the visible face-of the seat. As thissuperstructure is removable, it can be given out for cleaning and beimmediately and easily replaced by another ensemble of the same type, sothat it is possible to assure the continu ous operation or use of thechair,

The present structure in accordance with the present invention, may beapplied either by taking an existing seat and modifying it in such a wayas to make possible the fitting thereto; of a superstructure of theaforementioned type, using means to fasten into place such as thosedescribed below; or better still, by making a seat comprising a frameand a suitable substructure, having preferably an elastic suspension, onwhich it is possible to attach in a removable way the superstructure ofthe present invention.

-Thus, if an armchair consists of a seat proper, of a back and ofelbow-rests, its frame comprises a number of part's'which may be made ofwood, of metal (particularly tubular-shaped members having a round,oval, triangular, etc. section), of plastic material or any othersuitable material which various materials may be used simultaneously. v

The chair may comprise a frame consisting of two inverted U-shapedmembers I, the base of the U forming an elbow-rest, while the arms ofthe U form the legs of the chair. The preferably parallel disposedU-shaped members I are connected by two cross-members 2, 3, which areadapted to support the seat proper. End plates 4 form the sideboundaries of the seat, and a back 5, stationary or with variablereclining, consisting essentially, for example, of side plates 6 whichare connected by at least one cross-member 7. The back shown in Figs. 1to 3 is stationary in which case the side plates 6, at their basis,areassembled onto the end-plates 4 and the cross-member 3.

The assembling means between the various parts, so as to assure theirdetachability, may be achieved in any suitable manner, such as, forexample, by means of screw bolts 8 (Figs. 2 and 3).

Disposed over the aforementioned frame, is an elastic suspension 9,preferably both for the seat and for the back, which suspension can beof any suitable type, consisting for instance of a coil spring assemblyor of other elastic members butting at their ends against the end plates4, side plates 6, or any other members of the frame (Figs. 1 to 3).

It would also be possible, in accordance with an arrangement,susceptible eventually of being used separately, to constitute thissuspension by means of thin blades (plates) Hi, preferably metal plates(Fig. 6), attached at their ends to rod members H which are preferablyflexible.

or resilient, for example to cables made of rubber or other material,made integral with or secured to the end-plates i. The latter arearranged in a suitable manner for this purpose.

Regardless of which embodiment of the chair frame is used, the saidsuspension 9 shall be capable of supporting, either directly, thesuperstructure which is described below, or by the insertion of anymember or intermediate layer which shall receive the action of suchsuspension.

Referring now to the superstructure of the present invention, which isadapted to cover the suspension and to form the normal covering of theseat, it is arranged in such a manner that it has a certain rigidity orstress not easily achieved with the conventional seat cover, and that,in this manner, the formation of folds or wrinkles is prevented.

Thus, according to an advantageous arrangement, also susceptible ofbeing used separately, the aforementioned superstructure consists of acover made of fabric or of any flexible material, to which may beattached at least on the portions of its length intended to be fittedonto the seat and the back, a padding material of a compact nature andyet resilient or elastic, for example, a layer of sponge rubber, of aconstant or variable thickness.

An assembly of-this type is shown in Figs. 2 and 4, comprising the coverH! with the sponge rubber inside padding [3 and a zipper is, making itpossible to remove the padding, when desired, particularly for thepurpose of cleaning the cover l2. The assembly is shown with twopaddings corresponding to the seat and to the back, and a non-paddedportion l5, placed behind the back of the seat, as explained in moredetail below. In the case a padding is provided, the cover necessarilyconsists of double material, the padding being disposed between the twosheets. If however, the padding is dispensed with, one single sheet ofmaterial is required only.

In order to hold in place the superstructure, various means can beresorted to; for example, recourse can be had to tensioning meanscapable of acting in various directions.

The tensioning means for the superstructure are designed to exert atension at least in the longitudinal direction, transversely to thecrossmembers 2 and 3. The superstructure shall preferably be of asufficient length so that when the latter has been placed to cover theseat, the back and the rear portion of the back, its ends are disposedunder the seat. It is to be understood however that the tension couldalso be exerted in the crosswise direction.

The tensioning means for the superstructure are also designed to exert atension which tends to cause the said superstructure to engage at theline of separation between the seat and the back.

For this purpose, it will be advantageous to attach to thesuperstructure tensioning bars and in particular the bars 16 and IT atthe ends, and the bar it for the aforementioned line of separationwhichbars shall be subjected to the action of the above mentionedtensioningmeans and shall distribute such action over the entiresuperstructure.

These tensioning bars IE, IT, and I8 which can be made of a flexible orof a rigid material, are adapted to be connected to the cover l2 in anysuitable manner, and they shall be equipped with means for attaching theelastic means.

The elastic means can be arranged in any suitable manner, possibly in anadjustable manner, and may comprise, in particular as shown in Figs. 2and 3, coil springs 19 the ends of which are attached to the bars i6 andii, respectively, at the bottom of the seat, by means of openings 26 and2 i, provided in the respective bars I6 and Ii. The three bars i6, i7and i8 are disposed in loops 16, H and 18', respectively formed by thecover material. a

As to the center tensioning bar I8 intended to penetrate into thesubstructure at the junction between the seat and the back, suchbar may,for example, either be attached directly to the cross-member 3' or toany members connected to the cross-member, as shownin Fig; 2, or besubjected itself to an elastic pullor tension.v

The above described superstructure can be advantageously supplemented,in particular when the side-plates 4 are made of metal and assembledtogether, by a covering of the sideplates, which covering may consist ofa piece 22 of fabric or of any other material, the edges of which areheld against the corresponding edges of the said side-plates 4.

To assure an easy assembling, it is advantageous, as shown, to effectthis attachment by means of an elastic cord 23 running along'theabove-mentioned side-plates 4, which are provided for this purpose witha groove 24 along their entire periphery and designed to accommodate thesaid cord.

The piece of fabric or of other material 22, applied on the side-plates4 and end plates 6 makesit possible to impart to the latter a perfectlycontinuous appearance.

There are cases, however, when the cover 22 is unnecessary; such is thecase, for example, as illustrated on Fig. 5 in which the two sidepiatest, and end plates 6 are replaced bya single side 25, for example ofwood. The chair shown in Fig. 5 relates to a seat without elbowrests,this being shown only by way of example.

The cover, as designed in accordance with the present invention, mayeasily be applied to the substructure of the frame by laying the coveron the suspension, by attaching the center tensioning bar l8 and byconnecting the coil springs is to the end bars 16 and il, respectively.

When it becomes necessary to clean or to replace the above-mentionedsuperstructure, the removal of the cover l2 is achieved in the same easymanner, namely by disconnecting the coil springs i9.

y The structure of the present invention brings about numerousadvantages over the conventional chairs and, in particular, it permitsof keeping the chair continuously in use, since the cleaning of thecover 12 may be done without removing the chair to the upholsterer.Despite this advantage, the present structure provides a simpleconstruction, since the entire chair is made of a small number ofstandard parts, which permit of economical manufacture.

It is also an essential feature of the present invention to provide, asstatedabove an elastic suspension 9 which comprises a plurality of coilsprings 26 extending crosswise between the end plates 4 and side plates6, respectively. The end plates 4 are preferably of oval shape in thefront thereof, so that the front support of the seat comprises a numberof coil springs 26 or other suitable elastic means instead of providingthe conventional solid front bar of the chair frame.

While I haverdisclosed several embodiments of the present invention, itis to be understood, however, that these embodiments are given byexample only and not in a limiting sense, the scope of the inventionbeing determined by the objects and the claims.

Iclaim:

1. A' chair comprising a sub-structure and a super-structure, saidsub-structure including a side plate disposed at each side of the seat,and

resilient members connecting said side plates, said resilient membersforming a base for the seat of the chair, an additional side platedisposed at each side of the back and additional resilient membersconnecting said additional side plates to form the base for the back ofthechair, said first mentioned side plates forming about a right angleto said second mentioned. side plates, and said super-structurecomprising a longitudinal sheet of material removably disposed'over thesaid substructure, a first portionof said sheet material covering theseat of said chair, a second portion of said sheet material covering thefront face of the back of the chair, means for retaining the adjacentpartsof the said first and second portions between the seat and the backof the chair, and a third portion of said sheet material covering theback face of the back of said chair, andresilient members disposed inlongitudinal direction below the seat of the chair and connecting theoppositely disposed ends of the said sheet of material.

2. The chair, as set forth in claim 1, in which said first and secondportions of said sheet material comprise two layers, and a resilientmember is disposed between the said layers.

3. A chair comprising a sub-structure and a super-structure, saidsub-structure including a' to form'the base for the back of the chair,said first mentioned side plates forming about a right angle to saidsecond mentioned side plates and said super-structure comprising alongitudinal sheet of material removably disposed over the saidsub-structure, a first portion of said sheet material covering the seatof the chair, a second portion of said material'covering the front faceof the back of the chair, a loop formed by said material and disposedbetween the seat of the back of the chair, a rod inserted into saidloop, means for removably securing said rod to the sub-structure of thechair, and a third portion of said sheet material covering the back faceof the back of said chair, the ends of the longitudinal sheet ofmaterial forming loops,

which are disposed below the seat of said chair. each of said lastmentioned loops having a rod disposed crosswise and a plurality of coilsprings, the ends of each of said coil springs being removably securedto said rods and tending to retain said sheet material in stressedposition when mounted on the sub-structure of the chair.

4. The chair, as set forth in claim 3 in which said first and secondportions of the sheet material comprise double layers, and a spongerubber layer disposed between said two layers of the sheet material. 7 I

5. In a chair, including a seat, a sub-structure comprising a side platedisposed at each I side of the chair, front andrear cross membersconnecting the said side plates, resilient mend.- bers disposedcrosswise between the said side plates along the upper and front ends ofthe latter and connecting the same to form a resilient base for the top'and the front of the seat, the said front cross member being disposedspaced apart from the front end and spaced apart and behind the saidresilient members at the front end of the said chair, so that the saidseat has at its top face as well-as at its front end resilient support.

' BRUNO R. WEILL.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 125,783 Bishop Apr. 16,1872 1,430,248 Morse Sept. 26, 19221,662,216 Switzer Mar. 13, 1928 1,853,579 Sallop Apr. 12, 1932 2,231,800Cowman Feb. 11, 1941 2,545,513 Emberson Mar. 20, 1951 2,581,888 Schlegelet a1. Jan. 8, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 643,256 GermanyApr. 2, 1937 542,689 Great Britain Jan. 22, 1942 850,372 France Sept.11, 1939

